My Very Own Cinderella
by emilypretzel22
Summary: Clary just moved to New York with her mom and stepdad, and her mother insists that she go to the school Masquerade dance. The dance is crazy with lying boys, crazy girls, and her very own Prince Charming. What happens when she finds out that her prince is the most popular boy in school, but he doesn't know she was the mystery girl? What will happen as he searches for his princess?
1. The Masquerade Dance

**Okay, so this is the third story that I'm working on right now, but I just keep getting these random ideas, and once I start thinking, it's impossible for me to stop!**

 **Please check out my other stories of you haven't already!**

 **Now, onto "My Very Own Cinderella."**

"Simon, please, please, please come with me tonight," Clary begged over the phone. She was sitting in her room staring at all of her half empty boxes that she hadn't finished unpacking while talking to Simon on the phone.

"Clare-bear, you know I love you, but I refuse to go to the Masquerade dance tonight! That is the last time I'm saying it, and to prove my point, I'm going to hang up now. Have fun tonight," Simon finished before her hung up the phone. Clary groaned in frustration and threw her phone across the room.

Although he could be extremely aggravating, Simon was Clary's best, and only, friend in New York. She had moved to New York City with her mother, Jocelyn, and her father, Luke, at the end of her sophomore year. Of course, since it was summer, Clary had a hard time meeting too many people, so it was exciting when Simon had introduced himself after seeing Clary several times at the bookstore he worked at. They had immediately hit it off, and they had been inseparable for the entire summer. That was until this dance.

Clary's new high school, Alicante Academy, held and annual Masquerade dance the weekend before the first day of school every school year at the local all age's club, Pandemonium. Kids from all around the area were invited, so it wasn't just Alicante students either. Simon's mom had informed Jocelyn about this "huge event," and Jocelyn had immediately decided that Clary was going to go, whether she like it or not. Clary hated dances, and she didn't know anyone, so it was basically torture. Simon refused to go because he was "working," but Clary knew he was really just sitting at home playing whatever video game he was in the mood to play.

Clary sighed and got up to retrieve her phone, and she immediately noticed the text from her mom reminding her to be ready by eight o'clock sharp. _Like I could forget_ , Clary thought. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was already 6:30, so she decided it was a good time to start getting ready. If she was going to go, she was going to look at least half decent.

She started by taking a shower, and she decided to take a lot of time washing her hair and scrub every surface on her body. Once she was finished, she wrapped herself in a towel and shuffled out into her bedroom where she found her fuzzy, purple bathrobe. She decided to deal with her hair first, since that usually took the longest. She found her blow-dryer and dried her crazy curls in a way so that they weren't so hard to tame. Clary was pretty good at styling her own hair, so she went with a loose French braid on one side of her head and pulled all of her hair back into an elegant messy-bun. A piece of hair from the unbraided side of Clary's hair fell as a delicate ringlet that framed her face.

With her hair done, Clary decided to move onto her make-up. All she used was foundation, eye-liner, mascara, and lip gloss which was easy, although it took more time than her usual minimalistic approach. As Clary blended her foundation, she thought about everything that had happened in the past six months of her life. Jocelyn had been offered the opportunity to open her own art gallery here in New York, so she brought Luke and Clary and everything they owned to the Big Apple. Of course, Clary hadn't left much behind during the move. They came from a farmhouse in the countryside of Iowa where Clary spent most of her days alone with a pencil or a paint brush. Luckily, she had gotten to bring all of her art supplies with her to New York. The hardest part of the move was that, even though they were more in the suburbs and less of the city, Clary preferred living in the middle of nowhere with no obnoxious people or flashing lights. They had a bigger yard with no neighbors for miles, and although both houses seemed about the same size, this place just seemed more claustrophobic. Clary didn't like it at all.

Once she was done with her make-up, Clary walked to her closet and pulled out the dress bag with an expensive, French designer's name on it. She laid it on the bed and careful unzipped it. Since, the dance had been announced as a formal event, Clary's mother had demanded that they went shopping. Jocelyn forced Clary into the most expensive dress stores with fancy designers that the celebrities wore. Clary insisted that she didn't need that fancy of a dress, but Jocelyn denied, saying that "first impression are more important now than ever!" Clary suspected that her mother just wanted to spend some money since she just started getting a lot more than she used to make.

That's how Clary ended up staring at the most beautiful dress that she'd ever seen in her entire life. She had picked a full length dress that was light pink with a heart neckline. The neckline was covered in shimmering gems, and where the gems met in the middle, the gems created a line of gems that ended right at the top of Clary's stomach. The dress fell loosely from there to the floor, but when she spun, the fabric flowed around her making her look angelic. Jocelyn had also bought Clary matching open-toed platform shoes that had to be at least six inches high. The last piece was the mask. Jocelyn had made Clary a mask that was completely covered with small pink gems that were shimmered in the right lighting. On the side of the mask was a cream rose that was backed with a matching feather. The whole look was really outstanding really.

"Oh, Clary," she heard Jocelyn exclaim from her bedroom doorway. Clary had been standing in front of her full length mirror admiring the final product, and she hadn't even noticed that it was already 8:00. Jocelyn stood with her hand over her mouth and tears in her eyes in the doorway. Clary grabbed her clutch and walked past her mom as quickly as she dared in the death traps she was wearing on her feet.

"You get ten pictures, Mother. No more than ten," Clary declared when she heard Jocelyn descending the stairs after her. Jocelyn sighed, but she didn't argue because she was smarter than that; she knew Clary wouldn't budge.

"Ok, I want the first couple near the fireplace," Jocelyn stated walking towards the living room and mumbling about lighting or something else that didn't really matter. She positioned Clary exactly how wanted her and took a couple of pictures near the fireplace before decided that she needed some with Luke. Then she decided that they needed to take a few outside, so they preceded to look for a location that Clary could get to without messing up her dress at all. A half an hour later, Jocelyn was satisfied with her ten pictures, and Clary was getting ready to leave when Luke threw a curveball at her.

"Oh, I thought that you might want to know that one of the men I work with has a teenage son in the grade above yours, and he agreed to have his son take you to the dance tonight," Luke said casually from his spot against the kitchen counter. Clary's eyes immediately grew about ten sizes. She did not want an _older_ boy to have to babysit her all night, and she felt incredibly guilty already.

At that exact moment, the doorbell rang. Jocelyn nervously left the room to invite in the poor boy that had to be Clary's escort for the night. When they her mother returned to the kitchen with the boy, Clary's stomach plummeted. He was gorgeous. He had to be at least 6'2" with a perfect body that a model would probably be jealous of. He had black hair and a set of eyes to match. He wore a classic black suit and tie with a white, button-up shirt underneath.

"Hi, I'm Sebastian Verlac. It's very nice to meet you," the boy said and extended a hand to Clary. She reached out to shake his hand, but Sebastian grabbed her hand and pulled it to his mouth where he planted a soft kiss like a true gentleman. He never once broke eye contact, and Clary couldn't think straight.

"Clarissa Fray," she breathed. She had no idea where her full name came from, but she after she said it, she knew it sounded right. She felt like she was preparing to go to a ball in England in the 1800s.

"Clary, we have to take at least one picture of you with Sebastian!" Jocelyn exclaimed. Before Clary could protest, Jocelyn was dragging the kids into the living room and pushing them towards the fireplace. Clary thought that Sebastian might be uncomfortable, but he looked very relaxed as he wrapped his arm around Clary's waist and pulled her towards him. Clary stopped breathing as she was flush against Sebastian. Jocelyn began snapping pictures when Sebastian put his lips to the shell of Clary's ear.

"Clary?" he questioned. Clary didn't know if she would be able to respond without her voice trembling.

"Nickname," she whispered back quietly. Thankfully, her voice sounded as normal as it could. She peeked a glance at Sebastian only to see him already smirking down at her. She turned her whole body towards him so that if she wrapped her arms around him they would've been hugging.

"Why are you smirking like that?" Clary accused. She couldn't help but beam at Sebastian; he was hot! How was she supposed to not flirt with him?

"I just figured that when my dad told me I had to watch you tonight, I'd have to babysit. I realize now that it really is my pleasure to be with you tonight," Sebastian said sweetly. Clary could've sworn she heard Jocelyn "aw" beside them. Clary's cheeks were on fire. She was attempting to come up with a coherent thought when Luke decided to save the day for her.

"Okay, kids, if you don't get going, you'll miss the dance," Luke persisted. Clary knew that they had plenty of time, and there was a good chance they wouldn't even be late at all. That didn't mean she didn't appreciate the gesture though. Sebastian pulled away from Clary, but he immediately offered her his arm which she willingly took.

"Text me if you need anything! Oh and be home before midnight!" Jocelyn yelled after them, but they were already halfway out the door. Sebastian led Clary out to his car. She guessed she shouldn't have been surprised to find a silver sports cars waiting in their driveway. He opened her door for her like the gentleman he was and preceded to get in the driver side and pull out of the driveway.

"So you go to Alicante?" Clary asked, attempting to make casual conversation and calm her heart rate at the same time.

"Yeah, I'll be a senior this year," he responded nonchalantly. Oh how she wished she could be as calm as he was. She realized that, of course, he should be calm. He was driving a little kid to a stupid dance because his dad made him. No big deal for him.

"Do you play any sports?" Clary asked looking out the window and trying to act as unaffected as he was.

"Yeah, I play soccer in the fall, football in the winter, and lacrosse in the spring," he answered glancing towards her every once in a while.

"Wow, that's a lot!" Clary claimed. She glanced at him in time to see him smirk at her and turn his eyes back to the road.

"Sports are just my thing I guess. What's your thing, Clary?" he asked. She felt as though there was a double meaning behind his words, but she was struggling to find it.

"Art," she replied easily, "I love all kinds of art, but I'm really passionate about drawing over everything else," she finished. She was glad that this was the topic they'd started with since this was completely in her comfort zone.

"I'd love to see your drawings sometime," he answered earnestly. This boy could not be more perfect for Clary. "Oh, and you'll want to put your mask on now," he added. She pulled on her mask, but before she had time to reply though, they pulled up to what she assumed was Pandemonium. The crowd outside was huge, and Clary was worried about how they would get into the place. Sebastian pulled up to the valet parking section and opened Clary's door for her before handed the keys to the valet boy. Clary took Sebastian's arm, and he easily pulled her through the crowd and right to the front entrance. The security guard standing there did not seem happy, and Clary was worried that Sebastian didn't know what he was doing. Sebastian, though, was the image of confidence. He walked right up to the security man and leaned in to whisper something in his ear. The security guard looked at him, shrugged, and opened the velvet rope for them to enter. Clary's mouth dropped open as she followed Sebastian into the club. She was about to question Sebastian about what had just happened, but the sight before her stunned her into silence.

Maybe it was because she had never been in a club before, but Clary thought this was the craziest thing she'd ever seen. First thing that she noticed was how dark it was. Her hair looked brown in the lighting, and her dress seemed even lighter. Second thing was the pounding bass. It felt like the whole place was shaking around her, and it was insane. The next thing that stunned her was the sheer size of the space. It sure was bigger than a school gym where normal dances were, ten times bigger if she was being specific. She even noticed a stairwell in the back that led up to some kind of VIP area upstairs. The main portion of the club was mingling space packed with high tables and chairs, but there was a huge dance floor too. Lining the right wall was a huge bar with at least seven people behind the counter serving drinks. Clary also saw waiters and waitresses delivering drinks to tables around the room. The whole scene was insane considering Clary was used to sitting alone in her room drawing on most Saturday nights. Clary was pulled from her trance by Sebastian, who gently pulled her arm until she followed him to a less crowded alcove where she would be able to hear him more easily.

"Here, give me your wrist," Sebastian said. Clary extended her arm towards him, and he wrapped a green wristband around her bare wrist.

"What's this for?" she asked curiously.

"Well there are two wristbands; orange for underage students who aren't allowed to have alcohol, and green for basically everyone else," he answered. Clary nodded until she realized what he just said.

"But I'm underage, and I don't drink alcohol," Clary stated.

"I know you're underage, but most kids drink anyway. I just want you to have the option in case," he responded. He looked sincere, so Clary ignored the cloud of worry that had just covered her. She smiled up at him to show her appreciation.

"When we walked in, you acted like you'd never seen anything like this before," Sebastian observed. They were pretty close now, but Clary didn't mind.

"That's because I haven't! I come from the middle of nowhere, and I only ever let my house for school. I'm way out of my element here," she admitted.

"How do you feel about this setting so far?" he asked.

"I actually kind of like it! It's different, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. I like the atmosphere," she answered honestly. Sebastian took a step closer to her, and she knew the wall was right behind her. He wasn't intimidating though; he was extremely sexy, to be honest.

"How do you feel about _me_ so far?" he asked seductively. Clary felt her heart stop, and then it started up again in double time. She met his eyes and decided to have a little fun for once.

"Wouldn't you like to know," she whispered. He stared down at her with a smirk and quickly took a step back from her. He held out his arm to her once again, and she took it without hesitation.

"I'm going to buy you a drink," he said, "that has no alcohol in it," he added when he saw her expression. She let out a breath and scolded herself for being so childish. _Of course people are going to drink, Clary! You're in high school! That's what most high schoolers do_ , she thought to herself.

Sebastian led Clary to the bar and stood next to her, waving down one of the bartenders. He order a very complicated sounding drink, but when he turned to Clary, she ordered a Sprite. She didn't even want to try to seem cool and order a fancy drink because she would end up embarrassing herself by pronouncing it wrong or ordering the wrong thing.

After they finished their drinks, Sebastian asked if Clary wanted to dance, but she looked to the dance floor and how the kids were sexually dancing on each other and decided it wasn't her thing. Sebastian must've been bored by then because he excused himself which she assumed meant he was going to meet up with some more exciting people.

"How'd you end up as Verlac's date? I don't know if I've actually seen him with just one date before." Clary shot around to see a girl sitting next to her. The girl had long, dark hair and dark eyes to match. She was wearing a dress that could only be described as scandalous; if she had worn that at Clary's old school, she would've been expelled. It showed way too mush cleavage, and it was extremely tight.

"I'm Isabelle, by the way, but everyone calls me Izzy," she added after Clary didn't respond.

"Clary," she answered and reached a hand out to Isabelle. Isabelle gladly took it and smiled.

"Okay, back to Sebastian. How on Earth did you end up with the least catchable guy in Alicante? I know you don't go to Alicante because I've never seen you before, so where did you come from?" Izzy shot off one question after another.

"Oh, I just moved here. I'm going to be a junior at Alicante this year," Clary explained. Isabelle's eyes lit up.

"I'm going to be a junior to! Okay, off topic again. If your new, how are with Sebastian?" she demanded to know.

"Our dads work together, and my dad asked his dad to tell Sebastian to be my escort for the night I guess," Clary answered. It sounded weird when she put it that way.

"Okay, well that doesn't explain the sexual tension," Isabelle said slowly. Clary's mouth dropped open. This girl had no filter, did she?

"Um-I don't, I guess that-um-it's like-" but Clary was cut off by Isabelle's laughter.

"Oh, honey, you definitely don't want Sebastian, then. He's a player! He just wants to get laid, and you're pretty enough. He's acting all nice and gentlemanly I assume, but he'll come onto you by the end of the night. Watch out," Isabelle warned before she walked away still chuckling to herself.

Clary sat by herself at the bar utterly confused for what felt like forever, but was probably only five minutes in reality. She suddenly felt extremely claustrophobic and alone. She waved the bartender down and asked for directions to the bathroom. He pointed her towards the stairs and gave her a few simple instruction to follow. She made her way over to the staircase, but it took her a few minutes to fight through the crowd of people. Once she was up the stairs, she recalled the bartender's instructions and easily found the bathroom. There were a few girls, but not many as Clary expected considering the amount of people in the building. She assumed there was a less private bathroom on the main level.

Clary walked into one of the stalls and locked the door behind her. She pulled out her phone to check the time; _10:50._ After everything with Isabelle, Clary really didn't feel like riding home with Sebastian, so she went to her back up plan. She went to her contacts until she found the one she wanted.

"Hey, Clare-bear. What's up?" Simon answered on the second ring.

"Can you pick me up by 11:45?" she asked.

"Um, sure. What's wrong?" He sounded worried now.

"Nothing, really. I'll explain everything tomorrow when I'm not as tire," she promised.

"Okay, I'll be there at quarter-to-midnight," he agreed, and Clary hung up. She suddenly felt very tired. This is why she didn't go to things like this.

Clary exited the stall and examined her appearance in the mirror. She might feel like a mess, but she still looked as good as she did when she'd left the house. It probably helped that she couldn't see half of her face, but if she couldn't, neither could anyone else.

Once she was done in the bathroom, Clary decided to go back down to the main area to try and find Sebastian to tell him that Simon was going to drive her home. She made her way back to the staircase and began her descent when a group of incredibly drunk girls decided to force their way up the stairs even though it was obvious they wouldn't all fit. Clary was on the last step, but one of the girls hit her hard enough for Clary to lose her balance in her crazy high heels, and she began to fall. She never hit the ground though. Someone had caught her and lifted her back up until she was on her feet. Their hands were on her waist, and they were standing very close to each other. She looked up to find a pair of golden eyes staring back at her.

"Well this is awkward."

 **Yay! Just spent 4 hours typing this instead of studying for my math final! Hurray!**

 **Let me know what you think of this one!**

 **Review**


	2. Prince Charming

**Guys! The response for this story was awesome! This story will probably take priority over my other two, but y'all should still read them all! Thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews3**

 **Just for future reference, more reviews equals a quicker update from me, but other than that, I don't have an update schedule - in case you were wondering!**

 **Now, without further ado, onto chapter two! - hah that rhymes!**

 _Their hands were on her waist, and they were standing very close to each other. She looked up to find a pair of golden eyes staring back at her._

 _"Well this is awkward,"_ he said. Clary wanted to respond or, at least, move, bust she couldn't. His eyes were captivating; the color was nothing like anything Clary had ever seen before. They were golden, not like brown with specks of gold, like straight melted gold. They shined like stars, and Clary couldn't look away. She imagined being able to stare at these eyes for a couple hours so that she could paint them. She would frame them with black like his mask because it made them glow even brighter. Clary was broken out of her trance when the stranger released her waist and took a small step back.

"I'm sorry about that," she said, but it was obvious that she was still dazed. The stranger let out a low chuckle.

"It isn't your fault that a bunch of drunk girls knocked you down. I mean you are extremely lucky that they knocked you into Prince Charming, but that's beside the point," he stated cockily. He was smirking at her like the typical player he probably was; Clary didn't like players. She saw the problem already: she was mysteriously attracted to a player, and it wasn't even the first day of school yet. She quickly broke out of the trance that she was caught in and took a step back from her "Prince Charming."

"Well, Prince Charming, it looks like I must be your damsel in distress," Clary answered with a subtle hint of sarcasm she hoped he caught. He never lost his smirk or removed his gaze from hers.

"It looks that way doesn't it," he said quietly and gazed at her with a curious look that Clary couldn't decipher. She wondered what she looked like to him; she knew that the lighting made her hair look brown and she was taller than usual. He wouldn't recognize her after this night, which Clary was grateful for.

"I'm going to buy you a drink." Prince Charming broke Clary out of her train of thought. He grabbed her hand and dragged her to two open seats at the bar. Clary's hand was tingling, and she couldn't breathe from the skin to skin contact.

"I don't drink," Clary murmured so quietly that she didn't think he would've heard her. She was still a bit dazed from the tingling in her hand. No one had ever affected her so immediately. Prince Charming ordered them both a drink that Clary had never heard of before, so she assumed it was alcoholic. The bartender handed him the drinks, and he paid for both of them. Before Clary had time to protest, Prince Charming was leading them away from the bar and to a space much like Sebastian had brought her to when they first got here. Prince Charming suddenly stopped with Clary between him and the wall, turned, and handed Clary one of the drinks.

"I don't drink," she repeated, this time loud enough for him the hear her. He looked at her questioningly before placing the drinks on the table next to Clary.

"Why do you have that wristband if you don't drink?" he asked her. "It seems like a lot of extra effort to get that wristband if you don't need it."

"The guy I came with gave it to me," she answered with a sigh. She was supposed to be finding Sebastian. Prince Charming raised his eyebrows and took a step away from her.

"I wasn't aware that you came with somebody," he said seriously. Maybe he wasn't into playing his game with girls who weren't available.

"Oh, I'm not actually with him. It's complicated how we ended up together actually! I mean – he's just not my type," Clary responded before Prince Charming could walk away. His smirk was suddenly back and bigger than ever. He took a small step toward her, and Clary realized that she couldn't take a step back because of the wall behind her.

"Oh, really?" He leaned into her so that his lips were at her ear. "Whose type are you then?" he asked. Clary felt butterflies explode in her stomach, but she decided to have fun with this. She leaned forward so that her lips barely brushed his cheek and found his ear. His body tensed because this was the last thing he expected.

"Not yours," she whispered and slipped out from between him and the wall. She started walking to the direction of the entrance without looking where she was going. She could only feel the fire spreading across her body. Prince Charming had been pressed up against her, and she hated how good it had felt. She was terrified at her sudden attraction to a boy that she had just met. She didn't even know his name for goodness sake! She did not intend to come to the dance to meet a totally hot senior that may or may not be using her and literally run into another gorgeous boy that she had a freaky connection with. New York was crazy.

Clary was too busy focusing on her mystery boy to realize that she had walking right into the middle of the dance floor. A slow song had just come on, so she was walking between couples twirling in circles. She tried to maneuver around the people and get off the floor, but someone grabbed her hand before she could. She was suddenly pulled flush against non-other than her mystery boy. One of his hands held hers while the other lightly gripped her waist. Clary automatically put her other hand on his shoulder as a reflex. Their eyes locked and he began twirling them around the dance floor.

"It's incredibly rude to just walk away from someone like that, Cinderella," he said, never breaking eye contact. Clary raised her eyebrows at him.

"Cinderella?" she asked. She knew that she should get away from him; Simon would be picking her up soon. But, she couldn't seem to pull away from his gaze.

"You said yourself that you're my damsel in distress, and you're dressed up beautifully. The name only seemed fitting. I wouldn't mind knowing your real name though," he added. Clary had already decided not to tell him her name, so she directed the conversation.

"How about you tell me some things about you. How about your name? I refuse to continue referring to you as Prince Charming in my head," she responded. They were still twirling in circles, but they were in their own world with no one else.

"Good to know you've been thinking about me," he answered twirling her around again. "I'm going to be a senior at Alicante this year, and everybody knows me. This leads me to believe that you're either a new student at my school, or you go to a different school around here which is less likely because you would probably still know of me. I'm the captain of the soccer team, and I'm incredibly attractive which is why most girls swoon at the sight of me. You probably already figured that out already though." The stranger twirled her away from him, so she had a moment to breathe. When he pulled her back in, and there wasn't a molecule of air between them. "My name is Jace," he added. Jace stared into her eyes, and Clary knew that her heart was pounding in double time. He had stopped spinning them, and now they were just gazing at each other. Sparks were flying around them when Jace's eyes dropped to her lips and back up to her eyes. She sucked in a breath as he began leaning towards her, and she knew he was going to kiss her.

And then Clary's phone began to buzz. She quickly jerked away from Jace so hard that she almost fell over, but he grabbed her arm to steady her. Clary pulled out her phone and saw that Simon was calling her, and the time read _11:47_. She accepted the call as she turned and started walking to the entrance.

"Hi Simon, I'll be right out," and she ended the call. She knew Jace was following her, but if she wasn't home by midnight, her mom would think she died. Clary _never_ stayed out past curfew; she was the person that was home an hour early. She sighed before turning to meet Jace's expectant gaze.

"I have to go. My ride is here," she said quickly. "Thanks for the drink and the dance." Clary turned and ignored Jace's attempts to stop and talk to her again. She knew that if she stopped moving she would want to stay with Jace all night. She made her way outside and took a deep breath of the clear night air. She saw Simon waiting for her across the street and quickly made her way to his car.

"Hey, Fray," he said as she slid into the passenger seat of his mom's minivan.

"Hey, thanks for picking me up," she answered, taking another deep breath and leaning her head against the headrest. She was not ready for Simon's questions, but that didn't stop him from asking them.

"Are you okay? You seemed upset on the phone," he noted.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Tonight has just been a bit overwhelming, but I'm good," she answered. It was true; Clary was good. _Very_ good.

"Overwhelming?" Simon asked. He glanced at her skeptically knowing that she wasn't telling him everything.

"Can we talk about it tomorrow, Si?" she asked. She needed the night to decide what she was going to actually tell Simon. She knew that he wouldn't understand the connection that she had felt with Jace, and frankly, she didn't want to talk to Simon about her boy situations. She also didn't know if it was smart to tell him about Sebastian; Simon could be incredibly over-protective.

"Sure," he agreed, but Clary could tell that he wanted to talk about it. Clary laid her head back and closed her eyes. She thought about the night as a whole. She could ask Simon about Sebastian because he probably had some type of reputation around school, but she didn't know if it were worth having to tell him the whole story. She could also ask about Isabelle, knowing that Isabelle was in their grade, Simon would have to know something about the girl. Clary wondered whether she and Isabelle could be friends at school, or if she even wanted to friends with Isabelle in the first place. Then her mind wandered to Jace. _He's like my knight in shining armor,_ she thought and immediately scolded herself. She remembered that he seemed like a player meaning he was probably _many_ girls' "Prince Charming." But then again, maybe she had misjudged him, and he wasn't really that much of player. She decided to ask Simon one question tonight.

"Hey Si," she started hesitantly. Simon looked at her with raised eyebrows. She could tell that he was waited the whole car ride to have Clary start some sort of conversation about what happen. "Can you tell me a little bit about Jace, the senior at Alicante?" Simon's eyes immediately hardened as he pulled into Clary's driveway and turned the car off.

"Why are you asking about him? Did you talk to him tonight?" he accused. Clary could tell that Simon would not be happy if he knew what happened with Jace just by the way his eyes hardened at his name.

"No, I just heard his name said a lot, and I'm just curious about why everyone seems to want to talk about him," Clary lied easily. She had actually only heard his name once, but Simon didn't need to know that. Simon relax as soon as Clary reassured him that she hadn't talked to Jace.

"Jace Herondale is the school king, player, and bad boy. Captain of the soccer team, has dated pretty much every girl at Alicante, and he's an overall asshole. I hate him and his stupid popular group," Simon huffed. Clary could tell that this 'popular group' had given him trouble in the past.

"Who else is in this 'popular group' that you hate so much?" she asked cautiously. She suspected she could guess at least one other person on that list.

"Well, Jace is like their king, then there's his right hand man Sebastian Verlac," Clary cringed subtly. Of course it was Sebastian. "Verlac uses girls like it's no big deal, and it's disgusting." Clary rolled her eyes and silently thanked Isabelle for her warning. "There's Kaelie Whitewillow and Aline Penhallow who just like to be used by Jace and Sebastian which is annoying because Aline actually used to be really nice. There's a Jordan Kyle and Maia Roberts who are the power couple of school. Jordan's on the football team, and Maia is captain of the soccer team. They've been together forever. Jace's brother, Alec Lightwood, and Magnus Bane were the power couple, but they graduated last year. Then there's Jace's sister; she's a certified heartbreaker," Simon finished. Clary knew the answer to her next question before she even asked it.

"What's her name?"

"Isabelle Lightwood," Simon answered. Clary felt like hitting her head against the car window until the glass broke. The only people she had talked to at the dance were popular. She usually hated popular people, and she _never_ got along with them. Then something occurred to Clary.

"You said Jace's last name was Herondale, but Isabelle and Alec's are Lightwood. I thought you said they were siblings?" Clary questioned. Simon sighed, obviously not thrilled about discussing a bunch of people he supposedly hated.

"Jace was adopted, but that's all anyone knows. He doesn't talk about it to anyone really, especially not someone who isn't even friends with him." Simon motioned to himself. Clary thought about this for a second and decided that Simon had answered enough questions for her. The clock on the dash said 12:01, but, considering Jocelyn hadn't called her yet, her parents saw Simon's car in the driveway already. Clary leaned over the console and gave Simon a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks for coming to pick me up tonight. You really are an amazing friend," Clary claimed before she opened her car door and step out into the cool September air. She made her way up to the front door and turned back to wave at Simon, but he didn't look happy at all. He seemed very upset actually. Clary gave him a confused look, but he just shook his head and pulled out of her driveway. Clary made a mental note to text him about it later, but for now, she had to deal with her parents.

Clary unlocked the front door and automatically knew at least one of her parents had stayed up because most of the first floor lights were on and the smell of coffee was flowing through the kitchen doorway. She made her way to the kitchen and saw Jocelyn sitting at the island reading a book and drinking her coffee. She looked up in surprise as if she didn't realize Clary had been in the driveway for five minutes.

"Hi honey! I didn't even realize it was this late already," Jocelyn claimed, but Clary knew better than that.

"Don't pretend you've haven't been watching the clock every second for the past hour or that you weren't just watching me and Simon on the driveway. I know you too well, Mom," Clary responded taking a seat next to her mother.

"You caught me," Jocelyn raised her hands in surrender. "I'm an overprotective mom, sue." Clary laughed and gave her mother a skeptical look.

"You're drinking coffee this late? Did you not want to sleep tonight?" Clary asked. She and her mother were both dependent on coffee, but Clary was always smart not to drink coffee right before bed, or she wouldn't be able to sleep. Jocelyn rolled her eyes and slid a mug of the heavenly beverage towards her daughter.

"It's decaf," she responded, and Clary smiled before drinking a large portion of her mug. Jocelyn was watching her carefully, and Clary couldn't figure out why.

"Why are you staring at me?" she asked. Jocelyn started laughing while Clary sat there completely lost.

"I'm just wondering how on earth someone of something got you to stay out until curfew! I know Simon didn't because he didn't go to the dance, but you would've come back early even if you were with him. It also couldn't have been Sebastian because he wasn't the one to bring you home. I can't help but be extremely curious about what did it," Jocelyn said. Clary was silent. What was she supposed to tell her mother? There was no way she could tell Jocelyn about Jace or what happened with Sebastian, so the said the first thing that popped into her mind.

"I met this really awesome girl. Her name is Isabelle, and I had a really good time hanging out with her," Clary said as enthusiastically that she could. Jocelyn's eyes immediately lit up because Clary wasn't the type of girl to go out of her way to make friends.

"That's great, honey! Maybe you can invited her over tomorrow since it'll be the last day before you start school. I would love to meet her," Jocelyn finished. _Crap,_ Clary thought. She hadn't actually talked to Isabelle that much, let alone gotten her phone number. She used the first excuse that came to mind.

"Isabelle said she's going somewhere with her family tomorrow. Some before school day trip that they always do the Sunday before the first day of school. Maybe I can have her over sometime this week," Clary added and immediately regretted it. Jocelyn wouldn't let it go now, and Clary was going to have to either invite Isabelle over, or she would have to tell her mom the truth which was not an option.

"Okay then. Just let me know which day she's coming, so I can plan dinner," Jocelyn said cheerfully. She had finished her coffee, so she cleaned up her area, kissed the top of Clary's head, and made her way up to her bedroom. As soon as she heard the bedroom door shut, Clary groaned and dropped her head onto the table. It looked like she was going to be friends with Isabelle whether she wanted to or not. That meant that she would probably have to get along with the other poplar people, including Jace and Sebastian. Simon would not be very happy at all.

With that thought in mind, Clary made her way up to her bedroom and closed the door quietly. She let her hair down and washed her face before taking off her dress and stepping into the shower. For a few minutes, she just stood there under the hot water and let her mind wander. She didn't know whether she was happy or not that her mind wandered to Jace more than anyone or anything else. She couldn't stop thinking about how his skin felt on hers or how she didn't push him away when she thought he was going to kiss her. This though haunted her for the rest of her shower and, once she stepped into her bedroom, she knew only one thing.

Prince Charming had her completely wrapped around her finger, and she didn't know what she could do to fix it.

 **PLEASE READ THE TOP PART!**

 **Ta-da! This was so much easier to write than** _ **Catch Me if I Fall**_ **yesterday, and I'm having complete writers block on** _ **Off Limits**_ **. If you have read or want to read those stories I would appreciate any kind of feedback or ideas, and I would love some ideas for this story too!**

 **I don't know if I'm going to do any Jace POV in this story because I don't know if I want you guys to know what's going on in his head, but if you think I should, please let me know!**

 **I hope everyone's having an awesome summer, and I would love to hear about any fun plans or anything! I've been really busy with vacations, and I'm going to be flying around the country for volleyball camps soon which is pretty awesome. Of course I'll make time for writing though.**

 **I hope you guys like this story so far! I love you and your lovely ideas and comments, so keep 'em coming!**

 **Review!**


	3. The Popular's

**Don't kill me for not writing! I have been so busy and stressed, and I started getting these head aches and volleyball is crazy and school is stressing me out but no more excuses. Thank you everyone who reviewed! You guys are lovely. I have nothing really to say right now, so on to chapter 3!**

Clary woke up and she immediately noticed that something wasn't quite right. It only took her a few seconds to realize that it was the fact that it was six am, and her alarm was going off. She knew what that meant: it was the first day of school.

She groaned and turned off her phone alarm (which was blaring Taylor Swift) before she rolled out of bed and made her way to the bathroom across from her room. She avoided looking in the mirror while she brushed her teeth because she knew it was not a pretty reflection before she took a shower. Clary took a quick shower, making sure to detangle her hair and wash her face.

When she made it back to her room, Clary picked up the outfits she had laid out the night before for her first day at Alicante. The outfit included teal jeggings, a blue, pink, and white wide-striped shirt, a black scarf, and her favorite baby pink flats ( . ).

Since she had let her hair air dry, Clary threw her red curls up into a messy bun with a few ringlets escaping to frame her face. She didn't wear much make up, so she just put on some mascara and lip gloss. When she finally approved of her physical appearance, she made her way to the kitchen where she could smell the pancakes her mom was making for her.

"Good morning, sunshine," Jocelyn greeted her cheerfully. Clary took her seat at the island in the middle of the kitchen where there was already a plate stacked high with pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon. Clary ignored all the food and went straight for the cup of coffee Jocelyn had just poured her. She sighed after taking a sip. Jocelyn rolled her eyes and turned back to the last batch of pancakes cooking.

"Roll your eyes all you want, but coffee keeps people alive worldwide. I don't believe humans were meant to function before noon, but coffee has been the solution for centuries," Clary joked in a mock-serious tone.

"Or maybe you should go to bed before the a.m. and you might function like a normal human being without coffee," Jocelyn argued. She knew Clary all too well. Clary stayed up most nights binge watching Gossip Girl on Netflix until two a.m.

"As opposed to demon child I normally am?" Clary asked sarcastically.

"Exactly," Jocelyn answered before handing Clary the coffee travel mug that she brought with her to school every morning. Clary glanced at her phone and saw that it was time for her to leave to meet up with Simon; they were going to walk to school together.

"Thanks, Mom." Clary kissed Jocelyn on the cheek before picking up her backpack and making her way out the front door. Simon was waiting at the end of her driveway looking miserable.

"I do not want to go back to the hell hole that is called Alicante," he whined as she approached him. She stifled a giggle because he sounded so much like an eight year old boy who didn't want to go to bed.

"Come on, Si. It won't be that bad," she reassured him.

"You have no idea," he mumbled. Clary laughed and put her earbuds in.

The walk to Alicante only took 15 minutes, and the slight chill of the morning made it a pleasant trip. The first thing Clary noticed when they arrive at the school was how big it was. It looked like a college campus because of how many different buildings there were. It was inevitable that she'd get lost at least once, but it was more likely that it would happen several times.

The second thing Clary noticed was that the "popular kids" were sitting around the fountain (yes the school had a fountain), and it was obvious that they put themselves above everyone else. The way that sat and the way they distanced themselves from the rest of the students displayed an air of superiority. Jace was sitting in the middle of the group. Sebastian sat on one side of him, and a perky blonde girl with straight hair and perfect teeth sat on the other. Next to the girl sat Isabelle, and standing in front of them was another girl with black hair who seemed to be telling a story to the rest of them. On the other side of Sebastian was a very tan girl with dark hair kissing a boy who also had dark hair. She assumed they were Jordan and Maia, the school "power couple" as Simon had put it.

The last thing that she noticed was that the lighting at the Masquerade Dance did not do Jace justice _at all_. At the dance, she had thought he was stunningly attractive, but now, she could see that he was literally an angel. His hair and eyes were matching shades of gold that shined, and his skin was tan like a surfer from California. He wore simple black, athletic shorts and a white t-shirt, and it was obvious how muscular and built he was. Besides all of that, he was just gorgeous. And he had tried to _kiss_ her!

"By the look on your face," Simon's voice broke Clary out of her thoughts, "I assume you noticed the Golden Boy himself, Mr. Jace Herondale." Simon sounded incredibly irritated. Clary decided to play dumb.

"What? I'm shocked at how huge this school is! I've never seen a school this big in my entire life," she exaggerated. Simon was a lot more accepting of this excuse and gave her a smile.

"Let's go to the office building and get your schedule. All transfer students get their schedules before homeroom," Simon stated and began leading her towards the smallest building near the front of the campus. This required them to walk past the fountain, directly in front of the popular group.

Clary couldn't help but look at Jace as they passed, and it felt like the world was in slow motion. Jace, who had been listen to whatever the girl who was standing had been saying blinked and looked up at Clary from under his eyelashes. A curiosity came over him, but Clary turned her head away as quickly as she could and looked towards Simon's back, not daring to look over her shoulder at Jace.

Simon chattered happily as he led her to the desk at the front of the office building and even gave the lady at the desk Clary's information. She appreciated his help, but it annoyed her a bit, only because she couldn't stop thinking about the moment with Jace. Did the confusion mean that he recognized her, or was he just curious because he had never seen her before? Simon did say he dated every girl at Alicante, so maybe he wondered who Clary was because he had never seen her before. It was highly likely that he didn't recognize Clary because she remembered that the lighting made her hair look brown, and her heels gave her a lot of extra height. Also, she was wearing a mask, so he wouldn't recognize her face. Obviously he was just curious about who she was, and he probably thought she was insane because she was just staring at him. But she didn't want him to like her, right? Wasn't that her goal from the dance? Didn't his not recognizing her and thinking she was weird help with that?

"And here is your schedule and map of the school," the lady behind the desk said, breaking Clary out of her thoughts. She handed clary two pieces of paper and told them to have a nice day. Simon led her out of the office building, and Clary noticed that a lot of the students were no longer outside, included Jace and his group of friends.

"Everyone is getting to homeroom. I can show you where Mr. Carstairs' room is since his room is in the same building as my homeroom. Lucky we both have science teachers for homeroom." Considering how down Simon seemed about school earlier, he seemed oddly enthusiastic. Clary decided not to ask why and followed him to the science building, ignoring his constant chatter. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful for everything he had done for her and everything he was to her, but her head was spinning to fast to care about whatever he was talking about.

When they got to Mr. Carstairs' room, Simon explained how Alicante had four different lunch periods, and there was a good chance they wouldn't have lunch together, but he still walked away from her with a skip in his step. She could not be more confused about his mood.

Shaking off her nerves, Clary walked into Mr. Carstairs' room and found her name on an index card on one of the first seats. She took her seat and felt comfortable sitting and listening to the mandatory pre-school lectures that were uniform at every school. Mr. Carstairs handed out several safety forms and required paperwork, which Clary placed in her backpack just like every other year of school. Maybe she wouldn't be as out of place as she thought at Alicante.

Once the bell rang ending homeroom, Clary felt lucky because her first class was Chemistry, which meant she didn't have to switch buildings, she only had to go upstairs. She found the classroom easily with her map and was even happier to see that the teacher had a seating chart, which meant she didn't have to worry about not knowing anyone in the class. The class passed quickly since all they did was read over the class syllabus and safety procedures.

The bell rang, and the nerves automatically came back. Her next class was not in the science building, and she barely understood the confusing map. She followed the rest of the students out of the building and tried to follow the route the map showed, but, before long, she was almost completely alone, wandering around the campus.

"Lost?" Clary heard a voice call from behind her. It sounded familiar, and when she realized to whom the voice belonged, her heart plummeted into her stomach. Slowly, Clary turned to face none other than the king of Alicante: Jace Herondale. She wanted to admit that she was completely hopeless with directions, but that seemed too sincere to make him not like her. She went for defensive instead.

"Maybe I'm just skipping class, much like you I imagine," she responded with a challenge. Jace had come up to her so that there was much space between them, and he had a cocky smirk on his face.

"Considering it's your first day at a brand new school, I assume you aren't skipping. I, on the other hand, do skip class a lot, but I happen to have a free hour this period." Jace snatched Clary's schedule out of her hand and started examining it before she had a chance to protest.

"The best part of this new school: cocky strangers taking your things," Clary muttered sarcastically. She was proud that she remembered not to address him as Jace, considering she wasn't supposed to have met him yet.

"We aren't strangers," he answered without lifting his eyes from the paper.

"What?" Clary gasped quietly. She couldn't believe he hadn't said anything before about the dance. He didn't seem like he'd be as casual as he was acting. He raised he gaze to meet her wide eyes.

"We're talking right now. That means we are acquaintances. It would be nice to know your name though. I'm Jace Herondale," he said and extended a hand towards her.

Clary sighed in relief. He didn't recognize her from that night, and she was incredibly grateful. That is why the slight pang in her chest confused her. "Clarissa Fray," she answered. She took his hand, and electricity shot up her arm. She tried to hide her reaction to him since it seemed like he didn't feel anything.

"Clarissa," he tested.

"Clary," she corrected automatically. Why had she said her full name? "Everyone calls me Clary." Jace thought for a moment and then gave her a dazzling smile.

"It's nice to meet you Clary," he announced. "And since we are no longer strangers, I would love to show you where your next class is, and I assume you feel like the luckiest girl in the world at that offer." Jace winked at her, and just like that, the butterflies in her stomach died. Suddenly she remember that he was the popular guy. He was toying with her.

"I think I'll take my chances finding it alone. Oh, and on the whole acquaintances topic, I'd rather go back to being strangers." Clary grabbed her papers out of his hand and walked away straight to the art building, and her next period was advanced art. Who knew anger fueled navigation skills? The teacher ignored Clary's late entrance since she was probably used to it on the first day of school. Clary tuned out the first day lecture instead focusing on her anger at Jace. How could he be so nice and act like such an ass at the same time? She couldn't believe she'd forgotten that he was a player and got played. She was so naïve.

Art went quickly, mainly because she wasn't there for a third of it, but she was ready to move on to English. Clary found her way to the English building with ease, her navigation still being fueled by her frustration. When Clary walked into her English classroom, the first person she noticed was Isabelle. Isabelle seemed to be superior to everyone in the classroom by just sitting at her desk looking around. When she caught Clary's eyes, she smiled and stood to walk over to her.

"I see you met Jace," Isabelle started without a greeting or anything.

"What?" Clary asked dumbstruck. How could Isabelle have known that she and Jace had met? They were alone outside.

"I saw the anger in your face the second you walked in the door. It's your first day at our gorgeous and superior school, and I know the only thing that can mess that up would be an encounter with my lovely brother," Isabelle stated simply, as if this didn't surprise her at all.

"I met him, all right," Clary responded without further explanation. Isabelle laughed and gestured her over to the seat she had occupied moments before. Clary sat next to her just as the teacher entered the classroom. Ms. Penhallow (Aline's mother according to Isabelle) didn't like to spend a lot of time on the syllabus, so she gave the class free time to do whatever they wanted to do. Isabelle asked Clary about how she was liking New York and Alicante, but they also talked about her old house and what she missed. Isabelle filled her in on all the boys to lust for and the boys she should never touch with a ten foot pole. They acted like they had been best friends since birth, and Clary hadn't felt more comfortable since school had started.

When the bell rang, Isabelle glanced at Clary's schedule and noticed that they had lunch together next period. They walked together to the cafeteria (which had its own building) and Isabelle led her to a circular table already filled with four other people. She recognized Sebastian and who she assumed to be Jordan. She also noticed one of the girls (either Kaelie or Aline) from the popular group, the one with blonde hair, sat at the table. The fourth person was another girl with red hair like Clary's. The only difference was that Clary's hair was naturally red, and this girl dyed hers. It didn't look good with her skin tone, but it wasn't Clary's right to judge her.

"Clary, this is Sebastian, Jordan, Kaelie, and Seelie. Guys this is Clary. She's a new student at Alicante, a junior like me." Everyone greeted Clary, but Sebastian looked at her intensely.

"I know Clary. She was my date to the Masquerade Dance," he said nonchalantly. Seelie and Kaelie immediately shot her murderous glares. Isabelle seemed disinterested and motioned for Clary to sit next to her. Maia walked into the cafeteria then and joined the group, sitting next to Jordan. That left one empty chair next to Clary, which she didn't mind since she didn't know anyone else at the table.

"If it isn't my favorite acquaintance." Clary her Jace before she turned and saw him. She rolled her eyes and ignored him, even as he pulled out the chair next to her and sat down.

"Don't harass my friend, Jace," Isabelle threatened. Jace smirked and took a bite of his sandwich. Clary was watching him chew, and he caught her gaze and winked at her. She blushed fiercely before averting her eyes. She then caught the gaze of a pair of cold, black eyes. Sebastian.

"Could I speak with you for a minute, Clary," he asked. They hadn't gotten to talk about the dance or how they just ditched each other. She felt she owed him at least a conversation.

"Sure," she answered easily. She felt Jace's eyes on her and Sebastian as he walked her out of the cafeteria building. Sebastian led her over to a bench under a large oak tree in front of the building. He sat down motioning for her to sit next to him. She did.

"I wanted to apologize about leaving you at the dance. You didn't know anyone else, and I met up with some old friends. It was extremely rude of me to leave you alone, and then when I noticed how long it had been, I tried to look for you, but you had already left. I've felt terrible about it since Saturday, and I just thought I owed you a huge apology," Sebastian finished. He seemed so genuine and honest she felt bad for his worrying.

"It was no big deal! I met Isabelle and a few other people and had a great time. My friend had to pick me up to bring me home before curfew, and I didn't want to ruin your fun. I had a great time with you, and I don't think you were rude at all," she answered and place her hand over his on the bench. It was true. She had had great time with him, and he was so sweet she forgot why she was hesitant about him.

Sebastian glanced at her from under his eyelashes, and her brain stopped functioning properly. That was the only explanation she had for not pulling away when he leaned in to kiss her. She closed her eyes, but his lips never touched hers. Right when she felt his breath on her lips, a voice interrupted them and she moved away from him.

"Sebastian? Aline needs you," Jace said, wandering towards them. Sebastian clenched his fist and looked at Clary.

"I'll see you later?" he asked. She looked at him in confusion about what had almost just happened, which he must have taken as a "yes" because he stood up and walked back towards the cafeteria with a smile on his face. Clary sat for a moment in shock before a voice cut into her thoughts.

"You should be careful around Seb. He's not a nice guy," Jace said. He had moved so he was standing a few feet in front of where she sat on the bench.

"And you are?" Clary responded. She didn't sound mean, it was just an honest question.

"No," Jace gave her a sad smile. "But I don't trick girls into thinking I am. The girls I swoon don't need saving because they know exactly what they're going to get from me."

"And you think I need saving from Sebastian?" Clary asked, the anger from early bubbling up inside of her.

"I think you need saving from a lot of things," he answered nonchalantly. Clary stood up and looked Jace straight in the eyes.

"I don't need your help," she said, and she walked past him back to the cafeteria.

 **Guys. I just wrote for 5 hours straight. I really hope you like this chapter!**


	4. Digging a Deeper Grave

**I love holidays because the time off school gives me time to not stress and write instead! I can't wait to write because you guys wrote so many nice reviews, and it was awesome!**

 **I hope you guys like this chapter just as much if not more! Prepare yourself for some more Clace interactions:)**

After lunch, the rest of Clary's first day was pretty uneventful. She managed to avoid Sebastian and Jace for the rest of the day, for which she was incredibly grateful. She didn't want to see Jace because he was an asshole, but she needed to figure out how she felt about the whole Sebastian situation too.

Clary was happy to learn that she had classes with both Simon and Isabelle (but not with both at the same time) for the rest of the day. By second last period, her mood had been lifted to the point that she didn't even remember the confusion or anger she had felt earlier. In the minutes before the bell rang, Clary and Isabelle sat talking in the back of their history classroom. The teacher had handed them the standard forms and given them the rest of the period as free time.

"What class do you have next?" Isabelle asked, glancing at Clary's schedule.

"Um, Advanced Psychology," Clary responded after looking at the piece of paper in front of her. "Would that be in the English building?" she asked.

"Yeah, I had the class first period. It's actually a really interesting class as long as your partner isn't awful. The teacher puts you in pairs, and he claimed they were for an 'indefinite period of time'," she stated in a British accent, mocking the teacher. Clary giggled before she remember what her mother had said before school started.

"Would you want to come over for dinner tonight? I think my mom would love to meet you," Clary stated with a smile. Isabelle thought about it for a second, but she quickly decided and smiled back.

"I don't see why not. Text me your address, and I'll be there," she answered.

The bell rang before Clary had the chance to respond, and the girls parted ways. She managed to make her way to the English building pretty easily since she had already been there previously that say. She found the Psychology classroom and was ecstatic to see Simon sitting in the front row looking completely and utterly bored. She was about to take a seat next to him, but she remembered what Isabelle had said and approached the teacher who was already telling students where they would be seated. Hopefully, he had put Clary and Simon together, but Clary doubted she would be that lucky. She was right, and ended up seated in the back of the room.

Simon turned around in his seat and waved to her. She laughed to herself and waved back to her dorky best friend. Clary noticed that a cute, blonde girl had found her seat next to Simon, and she motioned between the girl and Simon with suggestive eyes. He glanced at the girl, and his cheeks immediately turned a dark shade of scarlet. Clary burst out laughing and didn't notice the figure making its way back to sit next to her.

"What's so funny?" a cocky voice asked. Clary would recognize that voice anywhere, and she turned her head to see Jace plopping down into the seat next to her. He had a challenging glint in his eye as he smirked down at her.

"Nothing," she responded with an honest smile. Being sassy hadn't worked, so Clary decided that it was time to kill with kindness instead. She would make Jace feel guilty for messing with her like he did with everyone else. She was going to take down Mr. Popular.

"Wow that was pretty civil compared to earlier. Not that I'm complaining about it. I mean, I don't know why you were even bitter in the first place," Jace said thoughtfully. Although he wasn't being completely sarcastic and rude, Clary could still hear the cocky undertone in his voice. She swallowed her pride and responded with what she thought would be the most logical explanation.

"I'm sorry about that, but you caught me at some pretty vulnerable times. First, I was lost on my first day of school, and, second, Sebastian had just almost kissed me. I wasn't sure what had even happened, and then you were there talking to me. I guess I just snapped a little." Clary looked up and saw Simon gaping at her and Jace having a civil conversation. She made eye contact with him, and his face turned to stone before he turned back around.

"I completely understand that," Jace responded, breaking Clary out of her distraction. "I was a bit of an ass in the first situation, so I'm sorry about that. But, I won't apologize about the Sebastian thing. He really is dangerous, and you seem too nice to deserve anything he wants you for," Jace reasoned. He seemed more genuine than the last times they interacted. She was stunned for a second, but she recovered quickly.

"Not to seem rude, but my relationship with Sebastian is none of your business." The bell rang, affectively cutting Clary off. The teacher entered the classroom and hushed everyone, but Clary couldn't help from leaning over to Jace. She dropped her voice to a whisper and said, "And I am not a nice girl." She looked up at Jace when she leaned away, but he didn't turn to look at her. Clary saw his mouth turn up into the smallest smirk that he didn't drop for the rest of the class.

By the time the final bell had rang, Clary was ready to go home. Psychology consisted of an hour long lecture, and Clary felt guiltier and guiltier every second that she had to stare at the back of Simon's head. She had the whole class to think of how she would explain why she was hanging out with all the people he hated with a passion, but she had yet to think of one.

Simon shot out of his seat and walked straight out the door forcing Clary to have to run to try to catch up with him. She made it out of the door, but before she got very far, Jace grabbed her arm and forced her to turn and face him.

"I'm kind of in a hurry, Jace." Clary tried to pull her arm away, but he help it just firmly enough to not let her go. He smirked at her.

"I can see that, along with the other students you tried to run over on your way out of the classroom," he responded with a chuckle. Simon would not like to hear that she tried to go after him, but Jace stopped her. She realized that there really was no way to make it better for Simon at that moment, so she stopped trying to get away from Jace and relaxed her rigid stance. Jace noticed this and released her arm.

"What do you need, Jace?" Clary asked.

"I want to know if you might want to come over later?" he asked. The challenge still sparked in his eyes, but, instead of coming off cocky, this time it was intriguing. Clary wasn't going to play defense any longer; it was time for her to take control of the offense.

"Why should I?" she challenged. She raised her eyebrows at him and smirked. He caught on to what she was doing and took a step closer to her.

"I think it could be fun. And, I think there are some things about hidden identities we should discuss," he shot back confidently. Clary's breath caught and her eyes went wide. He couldn't know about the dance! He didn't recognize her earlier, and he couldn't have figured it out.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her voice shaking.

"Well, you told me something about not being a nice girl in class, and I'm intrigued by that statement. You know what, maybe we won't end up talking at all," he finished and winked at her. Clary released a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. If he would've recognized her from the dance, she wouldn't have been able to ignore him like she had planned to. She immediately scolded herself for even having this conversation with him, and then she spotted the perfect escape down the hall.

"I actually happen to have plan tonight, so you can find someone else to not talk with," Clary smiled sweetly. Before Jace could respond, Clary walked past him and felt his eyes follow her down the hallway. She could practically feel Jace's anger as it became clearer who Clary was walking towards.

"Hey Sebastian," Clary said sweetly when she reached him where he was talking to another one of his friends. Sebastian turned towards her in surprise, but a dangerous smile formed when he saw who had approached him.

"I'll catch you later, Michael," Sebastian excused his friend. Michael rolled his eyes before walking away. Clary looked up at Sebastian with the best flirty smile that she could manage. "I was hoping I'd run into you. I was hoping we could get together sometime _outside_ of school." That was the last thing that Clary wanted, but she knew having any interaction with Sebastian would show Jace that Clary didn't care what he thought.

"I think that's a great idea." Clary batted her lashes and pouted her lips. "But, I'm busy this afternoon already, so it'll have to be later this week," she added with fake disappointment.

"I completely understand," Sebastian responded earnestly. "Could I give you a ride home, though?" he asked. Clary's brain screamed that it was a bad idea, but she still felt Jace's eyes burning a hole into her back. That was all the motivation she needed to agree.

"I would love that," she responded enthusiastically. Sebastian smirked and put an arm around her shoulders, leading her towards the doors that led to the parking lot. Clary glanced at where Jace stood with no emotions on his face. He caught her eye, and she could've swore that she saw anger and something else flash in his. As soon as she saw it, it was gone, and Clary was left wondering what the other emotion was.

Conversation with Sebastian was easy, but that was mostly because it didn't require a response from Clary most of the time. He was very self-centered and talkative, but the thing Clary noticed was that he seemed genuinely nice. He opened her door for her when they got to the car and let her choose the music. She had her doubts about him because of Isabelle and Simon, and she could admit she had just used him to piss off Jace, but he really was a nice guy that really liked her.

By the time that Sebastian had pulled into Clary's driveway, she felt herself actually smiling and laughing at his jokes. Looking at Sebastian, Clary saw how _sexy_ he was. His dark hair and eyes gave off a bad-boy feel, but, when he laughed, he had the subtle dimples. She remembered why she had liked him so much the first time she saw him.

"Thanks for the ride," Clary said after she had stopped laughing at Sebastian's latest joke. She felt electricity pulsing between them in the space between them, and she leaned a little closer to him.

"Anytime," he responded. "I'll give you a ride home every day if you want." He sounded hopeful, and Clary was about to agree when she remembered Simon.

"Actually I have a friend I walk with, but there was a bit of a mix up today," she explained. She noticed how much closer they had gotten while they were talking.

"Then I await the days that there's any kind of mix up," Sebastian whispered. Before Clary could think about it, he pressed his lips to hers softly. She melted against him as his lips lingered on hers. It was only a whisper of a kiss, but Clary's heart was racing so fast she thought it might burst. Sebastian was the one to pull away.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said gently. Clary's brain began functioning somewhat normally, and she grabbed her backpack and opened the car door.

"Thanks again for the ride," she said before getting out of the car and shutting the door softly. She waved to Sebastian as he pulled out of the driveway and sped away down the street. Clary felt a silly grin spread across her lips and didn't fight it. She did little skips to the front door while singing mindless tunes to herself.

"Hi, honey! How was your first day?" Jocelyn asks as soon as Clary stepped through the doorway.

"I think I'm going to like Alicante. Oh, and I invited Isabelle, the girl I told you about from the dance, over for dinner tonight." Clary smiled brightly at her mother, and Jocelyn was immediately suspicious.

"That's great, darling. Anything specific happen at school today that has you so cheery?" she asked.

"Nope." Clary wasn't necessarily lying. Sebastian hadn't kissed her _at_ school. "Just had a good first day."

"Oh, okay. Do you have many classes with Simon?" _Simon_. Clary felt her stomach drop. She needed to talk to Simon right away and explain herself. She doubted he would be okay with the whole Sebastian thing, but she needed to help him understand everything before he found out from someone else.

"I have a few, but I just realized I really need to talk to him. I'm going to go call him." Clary rushed to her room and quietly shut the door behind herself. She scolded herself for being so wrapped up in the Jace and Sebastian drama that she'd ignored Simon. She retrieved her phone from her backpack and pressed the number two (Simon's speed dial). He almost didn't answer, but on the last ring he finally picked up.

"You know it's a bad day when you have to debate whether you should answer a call from your best friend," Simon muttered bitterly.

"Simon! I am so sorry that it took me this long to call you. I tried to catch you after class but, I got… caught up. Please, just let me explain before you hate me forever," Clary begged. She waited for a minute before Simon responded.

"I'm listening," was all he said.

"Okay, so basically I ran into Jace earlier when I couldn't find my classroom. I remembered what you said about him being a dick and everything, and I could tell what kind of guy he was by just seeing him. I don't want anything to do with him, so I tried being rude to him. He bugged me again during lunch while I was talking to Sebastian-"

"Why were you talking to Sebastian?" Simon inquired suspiciously.

"Well, since the dance, we've had this weird vibe, and I think he likes me. I was just trying to figure him out." Clary tried to sound nonchalant, when all she actually felt was guilt for not telling him about the kiss.

"Did you? Figure him out?" he asked. He didn't seem as aggressive as he had when he talked about Jace, but he didn't seem thrilled either.

"Yeah, I kind of like him. He's been really sweet to me," she answered cautiously. Simon didn't respond for what felt like an eternity, but, eventually, Clary heard a sigh.

"At least it isn't Jace. Speaking of the devil, this doesn't explain why you looked all flirty with him during class."

"Well, I decided, if he's not going to leave me alone while I'm rude to him, I could be nice to him, and he'd eventually get bored and leave me alone. I can't stand him, but I'd pretend to be civil for a month if it means he'll stop bothering me, you know." Clary crossed her fingers, hoping that Simon would understand and forgive her.

"I get it," he finally said. "I'll forgive you for giving me a heart attack, but you have to invite me over tonight and cook for me. Just to prove that you're really sorry."

Clary laughed and was about to agree when she remembered that Isabelle would be coming over for dinner. "Um, about that. Isabelle Lightwood is actually coming over to my house for dinner tonight. I know you don't like their little group, but she actually super nice and cool. You're welcome to come too." She bit her lip, hoping this wouldn't anger Simon more.

"I'll come," Simon agreed quickly and ended the call. Clary looked curiously at her phone, wondering what that was about. She let out a sigh and decided to ignore her quirky best friend's quirkiness just this once.

Clary thought she should tell Jocelyn that they'd be having more company than expected, so she headed to the kitchen where her mother was already prepping what looked like a feast. _Guess I don't need to worry about a lack of food_ , Clary thought.

"Hey, Mom. I just wanted to let you know that Simon will be coming over tonight as well." Clary watched as her mother rummaged through the fridge before turning and smiling at her.

"That's wonderful, darling. I was just thinking that you should invite some more friends over. We've barely had any guests over since we've moved here. Feel free to invite as many people as you'd like," Jocelyn finished as she turned back to the food she was currently organizing.

Clary stood shocked for a moment before turning and making her way back up to her room. Her mother wasn't usually one to have a lot of Clary's friends over. She decided to ignore how weird everyone was acting today and just go with the flow.

She picked up her phone and texted Isabelle.

 _Mom wants to invite more people over. Bring a couple of friends, if you want. –C_

Clary hoped that Isabelle would bring people that she had met at lunch, but she didn't mind meeting new people. And, she hoped that Simon would be overwhelmed with a female presence that he wouldn't hold a grudge over the whole Jace thing. Her phone vibrated, and Clary checked to see a text from Isabelle.

 _Got it! Also, can we make this semi-formal? I have a new dress I've been dying to wear! Put on something pretty:)_

She rolled her eyes, but decided to play into Isabelle's semantics. She went into her closet to find the black shift dress she had gotten for her birthday, but had yet to wear. She slipped it on and decided to put her hair into a messy bun with a few small tendrils framing her face. She touched up her makeup and added a gold accent necklace to her attire.

Clary glanced in the mirror again and noticed her phone lying on the bed. She picked it up and sent Simon a text, warning him that dinner would be a semi-formal event. She glanced at the time and it read 5:14. She looked at her texts and saw one from Isabelle, saying that they had left five minutes ago. She decided to head downstairs to lay out chips or something for snacks since dinner wouldn't be ready until 6.

Jocelyn barely noticed as Clary went to the pantry and pull out chips and crackers and organized them into decorative bowls. She was just placing the bowls on the table in the living room when there was a knock on the front door. Clary straightened up her dress and made her way over to the door. She pulled the handle and immediately froze when she saw her guests.

Isabelle stood with a smile on her face talking to the girl next to her, Kaelie, if she remembered correctly. Behind them stood non-other than Jace himself. He was bantering with Sebastian who shoved him jokingly away from him. Behind them, Simon had just walked up, and he looked not only confused, but also furious.

"Well, shit."

 **Predictions on how this dinner party will go? Review and give me your thoughts and ideas!**

 **Love ya!**


	5. Friend's Dinner

" _Well, shit."_

At the sound of Clary's voice, both Sebastian and Jace looked toward her. Isabelle and Kaelie stopped their conversation and turned toward Clary as well.

"Hey Clary! I hope you're okay with my choice of friends for the evening," Isabelle said enthusiastically as she brushed past Clary, walking into her house. Kaelie followed her without so much as a glance at Clary. Both Sebastian and Jace seemed to want to talk to her, but Clary's focus went to Simon, who had turned away from the house and began walking away.

"Excuse me," was all Clary said before pushing past the boys and running after her best friend. "Simon!" she called. He seemed to hesitate before turning to look at her. To say he looked upset would be an understatement.

"I'm so sorry! My mom told me to invite more people to dinner, so I told Isabelle to bring some friends. I totally didn't realize that she would bring them. I was so worried about us and you being upset with me that I wasn't thinking." The words rushed out of Clary in one breath. She did not want Simon to leave, especially after what happened at school today. He contemplated what she said for a moment before his eyes softened ever so slightly.

"I forgive you. I'm sorry I was being such a prick about the whole Jace situation. I know you didn't choose to be his partner. I still don't particularly want to have dinner with them though," Simon concluded warily.

"Please, Simon. I don't want to have dinner with Jace either, I promise. But if you stay it'll be so much more bearable." Clary gave Simon her best puppy dog look that always worked on him.

"Ugh, not the look! Fine, I'll stay. But I'm only doing it because Isabelle is hot, and this will be the only chance for her to fall in love with me," Simon said seriously, causing Clary to laugh.

Simon wrapped his arm around Clary's shoulders as they walked back inside together. Simon's laid back attitude vanished as soon as they walked in the door. Kaelie, Jace and Sebastian were all standing around in the dining room talking while Jocelyn was setting the table. Isabelle walked out of the kitchen, placing another dish on the table and smiling at Clary's mother. Jocelyn thanked her just as she looked up and saw Simon and Clary enter the room.

"Perfect timing, you two. Dinner is ready," Jocelyn said with a smile. She motioned for everyone to sit down. Jocelyn sat at the head of the table like she usually did. Simon sat to her right, and Sebastian sat to her left before Clary could. Clary was about to walk around the table to sit next to Simon, but Isabelle beat her to it, Kaelie plopping down beside her. Clary sighed and sat next to Sebastian, leaving Jace to take the seat next to her and across from Kaelie. Isabelle smiled at Simon, and the poor boy looked like he was going to pass out. At the same time, Kaelie gave Jace a not so innocent smirk, to which Jace rolled his eyes and turned toward Clary. Clary quickly looked away, hoping Jace didn't read into the fact that she was watching him, only to get trapped by Sebastian's gaze.

"So, I've heard about Isabelle, but I only really know Simon and Sebastian, so I'd love to know more about the rest of you," Jocelyn stated, saving Clary from having to converse with either of the boys she was stuck between.

"I'm Kaelie. I'm in the same grade as Clary and Isabelle, and I'm the captain on the cheerleading squad." Kaelie's voice was high-pitched and incredibly annoying, but Jocelyn just smile and looked at Isabelle.

"I'm Isabelle, and I'm also a junior. I have three brothers. Alec is a freshman in college. Then there's Jace." At that she motioned to the blond-haired boy next to Clary. "And then my youngest brother Max is nine."

"Oh that must be a lot for your parents to deal with! It's always just been Clary in our house," Jocelyn said kindly. "You and Jace don't look anything alike," she continued, the question readily apparent in her voice.

"That's because I'm not actually her brother," Jace responded before Isabelle could. "Not by blood at least. She's been like a sister to me since I was ten years old though, so we're family in the ways that really count." Jace looked at Isabelle with a smile that seemed more genuine than any smile she'd seen from him before.

"Aw, I think that's wonderful! What should we know about you, Jace," Jocelyn asked, completely transfixed by Mr. Wonderful himself.

"Well, in the fall I play soccer with Seb." Jace looked around Clary and gave Sebastian a smirk that the dark-haired boy returned. "In winter and spring, I play club soccer, so no other school sports. I'm going to Syracuse to play soccer after this year." While talking to Clary's mother, there was none of the cockiness that Clary had dealt with earlier.

"Wow, that's amazing, Jace! Tell me more about their program." Jocelyn and Jace continued their conversation about soccer, and Kaelie leaned over to Isabelle, starting a conversation of her own. Soon Simon joined in, and Clary's only option sat to her right.

"It looks like we ended up getting to hang out," Sebastian whispered into her ear. He pulled back slightly and looked into Clary's eyes. She felt butterflies in her stomach as she thought about how he had kissed her this afternoon. The smile that she gave him wasn't fake.

"I'm glad," she responded before pulling away from him farther. She didn't need Jocelyn noticing anything between her and Sebastian and asking questions. Clary glanced toward her mother, who in fact did not notice anything because she was too busy laughing at a story that Simon was telling to her and Isabelle. She noticed that Kaelie was staring across the table with a bitter look on her face. Clary turned to look at the item of Kaelie's discontent; Jace was fuming as his empty plate. Clary wondered why he was so upset when Jace looked up at her. She became trapped by the intensity of those gold eyes, and couldn't seem to look away. There were so many emotions swirling behind Jace's gaze that Clary didn't know what to think of the stare.

"Clary?" She was broken out of the trance by her mother's voice. She blinked and looked away, feeling like she had just woken up. Jocelyn was looking at her daughter expectantly.

"What?"

"I asked if you wanted to take your friends out back while I clean up and get dessert ready," Jocelyn repeated suspiciously. She glanced between Clary and Jace with a question in her eyes. Clary avoided meeting her mother's gaze as she stood from her seat and walked through the kitchen to the backdoor that led to the backyard.

Clary's backyard was a large grassy area lined by trees for privacy. Stone steps led from the kitchen a stone patio where Luke had set up an outdoor couch set with a love seat and a few individual chairs, all centered around a stone fire pit. Luke and Jocelyn were still arguing about whether or not they wanted to turn the grassy area into a pool, but Clary didn't care either way.

"Wow, Clary I wish I had your backyard. This is awesome," Isabelle exclaimed, dropping onto the couch.

"Yeah, my parents made sure we had a good backyard when we moved here. We had so much more space at our old house though," Clary responded as she sat on the loveseat. Sebastian immediately dropped down beside her and put an arm over her shoulder. She didn't know why, but she nervously looked to where Jace sat in one of the chairs. The expression he had during dinner was gone, and his cocky smirk was back as he grabbed Kaelie's arm as she walked by and pulled her onto his lap. She beamed and leaned even farther into him. Simon watched them with wide eyes as he sat on the couch a safe distance away from Isabelle.

"What's Iowa like? It must be so different from here." Clary appreciated Isabelle's attempt at conversation even though there was an air of discomfort because of Jace and Kaelie.

"Everything was so open and peaceful. It feels so claustrophobic here sometimes. Plus when I first moved here, I didn't know anyone. I was lucky to have met Simon." Clary smiled across the fire pit to her best friend, but his eyes were on Isabelle, as they had been all night. Isabelle turned toward him and asked him something about his job, but Clary wasn't listening. She couldn't take her eyes off of Jace and Kaelie.

Jace was whispering something into Kaelie's ear that had her biting her lip and smirking. She giggled as he nipped at her ear and gripped his arm. His hand rested on the top of her thigh, on the skin that was showing beneath her scandalously short skirt. Jace lowered his mouth to her shoulder and glanced up at Clary from under his lashes. Her face burned as she turned her head from his. Stupid! She was so stupid for letting his games get under her skin.

"We should make a fire," Isabelle stated, looking at Clary hopefully. Clary was grateful for the distraction from her own thoughts about Jace.

"Yeah we should! Sebastian, will you help me get wood?" Clary turned to the boy beside her. He smiled before standing up and offering her his hand. She took it and led him to the side of the house where Luke kept the wood.

"You've been awfully quiet," Clary said as they rounded the corner, and the group out back was hidden from view. She leaned back against the house, not wanting to rush back to the watch Jace with Kaelie. Sebastian turned toward her and put his hand beside her head, effectively trapping her between him and the wall.

"I prefer observing. Usually Jace and Izzy are the ones who talk in the group, so I'm used to just sitting back and listening. I've also been distracted by how good you look. I can't keep my eyes off you."

He took a step closer to her, and they were sharing breaths. Staring into Sebastian's eyes, Clary forgot all about Jace and Kaelie. Hell, she could barely remember her own name. When she didn't respond, Sebastian let out a small laugh and closer the distance between their lips. Clary let out a small gasp as he pushed her against the house, and she was flush against him. While their last kiss was soft and sweet, this kiss was brutal. Sebastian attacked her mouth until Clary couldn't breathe. When she pulled away with a gasp, Sebastian continued kissing down her neck. His hand rested just beneath where her dress ended, and he started dragging it higher up on her thigh.

Suddenly, something cold shot through Clary. She didn't want to go this far with Sebastian. He obviously didn't sense her newly found hesitation, because neither his hands nor his mouth stopped.

"Sebastian," Clary mumbled, hoping it would be enough for him to stop for a second. He only raised his hand higher and kissed her neck hard enough that it hurt.

"Sebastian," she said louder. When he didn't, Clary put her arm on his shoulders and pushed, but he didn't budge.

"Sebastian, stop!" Clary raised her voice, but didn't dare yell loud enough for the group in the backyard to hear. Sebastian stopped and pulled back with an annoyed sigh.

"What?" he asked, irritation seeping off him in waves. It shocked Clary seeing as how he was so sweet only minutes before.

"I'm not ready for that. We just met." Clary felt numb. She couldn't believe what had just happened. What she had _let_ happen.

"I wasn't going to do anything, Clary. You don't need to be so uptight."

Before Clary could respond, someone cleared their throat beside them. Jace was standing with his hands in his pockets watching them carefully.

"Your mom called us in for dessert. I thought I should come get you before she asked where you were." Jace was speaking solely to Clary. She felt tears burning in her eyes; she was so overwhelmed by what just happened with Sebastian that all she could do was nod.

Sebastian turned away without looking at Clary and made his way back to the group. Once he was gone, Clary looked up and met Jace's gaze.

"How much… how long were you standing there," she asked quietly. He took a step closer to her.

"Are you okay?" His voice didn't contain any of it's usual swagger. It reminded Clary of how he spoke to her mother, but there was something soften there now.

She almost fell apart in front of him. Almost let the emotions tear free and show him everything. But then someone called his name. Someone with a high-pitched voice and pretty blond hair. That voice snapped Clary back into reality.

"I told you, I don't need your help," was all Clary said as she breezed past him, heading back to everyone that was waiting for them.


End file.
